The Brain-Training Software Industry

Use it or lose it. These are guiding words of wisdom when it comes to keeping your wits sharp, and it’s a slogan that has spawned a massive brain-training software industry aimed at keeping your mental muscle fit.

Since the early ‘90s, cognitive research has been mounting evidence in support of the idea that brain training improves mental health and longevity. Whether brain stimulation comes from intellectually demanding jobs, hobbies or education, the result is one and the same. Stimulating the brain can generate new neurons and can actually strengthen their connections, a result that is thought to inhibit mental decline and delay or prevent mental illnesses such as Alzheimer’s.

Although the full benefits of brain training have yet to be unraveled, this has not slowed the brain-training software industry from posting record growth across all consumer segments. SharpBrains.com, an industry watchdog, has recently estimated the size of the U.S. brain-training software industry at $225 million in 2007, up $100 million from 2005.

Clearly, the brain-training software industry is onto something big. However, the market has become flooded with products that are leaving some would-be consumers feeling a little brain drained. Let’s quell the confusion, break down the brain-training software industry and see who’s using the products:

The individual consumer

The individual consumer segment of the market is showing the most dramatic gains in the brain-training software industry — a fact that industry experts seem convinced is a result of Nintendo’s Brain Age phenomenon.

At the end of 2007, Nintendo’s ever-popular Brain Age and its Japanese equivalent, Brain Training, sold a combined 11.71 million copies worldwide — and sales of Brain Age 2 are not far behind. Nintendo’s mind-meddling video series feature a variety of brainteasers that range from math questions to Sudoku puzzles, and while the software is not supported by any cognitive research, Nintendo has made it very clear that brain training is fun — and profitable!

Not surprisingly, Nintendo’s success has spawned an army of competitors: GameLoft’s Brain Challenge was released in 2008 for the Xbox 360 Live Arcade, while a number of websites, including MyBrainTrainer.com, Happy-Neuron.com and BrainBuilder.com, now offer comprehensive online brain-training programs for a small fee.

Aside from the just-for-fun segment of brain-training genre, examples of research-backed software are also gaining recognition. The Brain Fitness Program by Posit Science offers detailed memory training at only an hour a day for eight weeks. Tailored to the elderly population, Posit’s software is upheld with significant research and company execs are insistent that the product is not a video game. Similar claims are being made by Dakim, Inc. and CogniFit, Inc. in support of their respective programs, although independent research is lacking.

K-12 school systems

For many young adults, memories of those blessed computer learning games that were made available in school are greeted with warm and fuzzy endearment. All of them — from All the Right Type to Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, and from Mario Teaches Typing to the Cross Country Canada/USA series — are relics of a better time.

The future promises a rebirth for the educational brain-training software industry; however, the games will likely be more purpose-driven and backed by substantial behavioral research. Much of the software we are now seeing is aimed at addressing students with learning disabilities. Fast ForWord by the Scientific Learning Corporation is one example of needs-based software that’s aimed at children who are reading below grade level. Lexia Learning Systems Inc., on the other hand, offers a slew of educational reading software to guide anyone at any stage of life.

Aside from strict education, what these next-generation pieces of learning software are truly teaching us is that educational gaming is no longer a petty endeavor; these companies have literally invested millions in development and research. Though the majority of research is internally driven, offering case studies and the like, several independent, peer-reviewed studies have offered promising results.

The brain-training software industry also targets professionals and athletes…